Snoop Dogg has rapped in songs where gay slurs have been tossed about.

He’s even said them, part of a long list of rappers who have freely fuck and fag in a rhyme.

For years, anti-gay epithets and sentiments in rap have largely been accepted, along with its frequent misogyny and violence, as part of the hip-hop culture — a culture that has been slow to change, even as gays enjoy more mainstream acceptance, particularly in entertainment.

But while perhaps glacial, a shift appears to be on the horizon.

“People are learning how to live and get along more, and accept people for who they are and not bash them or hurt them because they’re different,” Snoop Dogg said in a recent interview.

Frank Ocean might be largely responsible for that. The rising star, who revealed on his blog last month that his first love was a man, is technically an R&B singer. But he has produced and collaborated with some of music’s top hip-hop acts, from Jay-Z to Andre 3000 to Kanye West to Nas. He’s also co-written songs for Beyonce, Justin Bieber, and John Legend, and is a member of the alternative rap group Odd Future.

“When I was growing up, you could never do that and announce that,” Snoop said of Ocean’s revelation. “There would be so much scrutiny and hate and negativity, and no one would step [forward] to support you because that’s what we were brainwashed and trained to know.”

When 24-year-old Ocean made his announcement, he received a ton of support from the music world, mainly through Twitter and blogs, including encouraging words from 50 Cent, Nas, Jamie Foxx, Def Jam Records founder Russell Simmons, Beyonce, and Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Even Ocean’s Odd Future bandmate, Tyler, the Creator, showed some love, though he’s used homophobic slurs in his songs.

“[The support for Frank is] an extension of the overall kind of support we’re seeing across the country for LGBT people, and not just in a broad sense, but specifically from iconic members of the black community,” said Daryl Hannah, GLAAD’s director of media and community partnerships, who namedropped President Obama and Jay-Z as those leading the change.

While the support for Ocean is strong, and some rappers — including Nicki Minaj — have said a gay rapper will soon hit the music scene, it’s still hard to imagine that the male-dominated, macho rap world could include a gay performer.

Anti-gay sentiments have been entrenched in hip-hop for decades. Darryl “D.M.C.” McDaniels of the iconic rap group Run D.M.C., says it was the norm for years.

“You would have had 50 rappers jump on a song, diss the gay people because it’s cool,” D.M.C. said.

That attitude has abated little, even as other parts of the entertainment industry have curtailed what many consider to be anti-gay material. (Last year, Universal Pictures altered a trailer for the movie Dilemma because a character called a car “gay.”)

Eminem was targeted by groups like GLAAD for his incessant slurs against gays, a role that now seems to be embodied by Tyler, the Creator, in his raps. Lil Wayne recently used the f-word on Chris Brown’s “Look at Me Now,” a Grammy-nominated Top 10 pop hit and No. 1 rap and R&B song. There are also terms like “no homo” and “pause” used in the hip-hop community after an utterance to acknowledge that what was said does not have any homosexual intent.

Two promoters are being sued by an entertainment company after they failed to make good on their promises. 80’s Baby Entertainment say they paid Carlos Goodspeed and Jason “DJ J Rudd” Rudd a deposit with the understanding that they could secure rapper Drake and several other artists for two separate concerts but the two never delivered the superstar and then failed to return the deposit.

According to the lawsuit, which was filed on Monday (September 13), 80’s Baby first contacted Goodspeed back in March 2009. The company forked over $27,500 to bookCiara, Plies, Soulja Boy, and Webbie for a Summer Jamconcert but was told later that Ciara had to back out. Goodspeed allegedly promised to return the deposit to the company once the R&B singer’s label refunded the money, however 80’s Baby never saw a dime.

The issue became bigger in July 2009, when the company decided they wanted to book singer Jamie Foxx through another promoter. They needed the deposit they paid Goodspeed for the new concert but still couldn’t retrieve the funds so they weren’t able to seal the deal.

The complaint, then fast forwards to December, when the company started working with a third party and this time they linked up with Rudd in the hopes of booking Drake. They paid a $20,000 fee and in the claim state that contract says that if the Young Money MC was a no-show, their deposit would be returned.

What they didn’t know though at the time was that Rudd and Goodspeed were linked and the money they gave to Rudd actually went into an account that Goodspeed controlled. Again they were misled and they have yet to see either of their deposits.

80’s Baby is accusing the two promoters of fraud, breach of contract, negligent misrepresentation and theft of service and is seeking to recoup $50,000 and an undisclosed amount in damages.

Just when we thought Jamie Foxx was swirling with Olivia Munn, he proved us wrong by using Stacey Dash as his arm candy during Oscar Weekend.

Stacey and Jamie recently chopped it up on his radio show where she announced her divorce, and the two have been ‘real close’ ever since. After seeing them together we had to wonder if Jamie is soaking up Stacey’s panties and bangin out those “close to perfect” backs.

Within the confines of the current rap scene, Queen Latifah has seen a shift in the landscape, with a noticeable lack of female rhymesayers.

So much so, the veteran entertainer admitted to USA Today how concerned she was about hip-hop’s silent female representation in rap.

“Never in my career do I remember rap being so male-dominated,” Latifah said. “In videos, women are basically shown as the girl you shake the booty with. They’re objectified.”

Although it may seem non-existent, Latifah is quick to say that “there are females out there who can rap, who listen to rap” while advocating the importance of equal representation in the music.

“Missy and Lil’ Kim and the young up-and-coming ones need an opportunity to be heard,” she said. “I think we’re all masculine and feminine, and a society can’t be right if you don’t honor the feminine voice.”

Latifah’s comments come amid her return to rap with her latest album, Persona. The release, which features appearances from Missy Elliott, Busta Rhymes and Mary J. Blige as well as production from Cool & Dre and The Neptunes, follows the Oscar nominee’s forays into singing with 2004’s The Dana Owens Album and 2007’s Trav’lin’ Light.

Among the songs featured on Persona is “The World,” a song in which Latifah alludes to an incident in which she was molested when she was 5-years-old by a male babysitter.

According to the rapper, the tune provided the perfect outlet to express her feelings regarding the incident.

“It was important for me to write that, to get it off my chest. And to discuss it with a therapist, and tell my parents — which I did, eventually, though it took me about 20 years. And hopefully it will be helpful to someone out there who has gone through a similar situation,” said the rapper, who admitted the incident “left me not knowing how to deal with certain things.”

In support of Persona, which was released in August, Latifah will embark on a month-long concert tour.

The outing, which is scheduled to kick off November 1 in Seattle, will be a welcome experience for the rapper, who expressed her excitement at hitting the road with her new material.

“I know I’ll have so much fun rocking these new songs on stage, and, of course, playing older favorites,” she said.

Outside of music, Latifah will return to the big screen as she appears in the upcoming romantic comedies Valentine’s Day with Jamie Foxx and Jessica Alba and Just Wright with fellow rapper/actor Common.

Veteran rapper/actor Busta Rhymes is going beyond the borders of the United States to give fans a lively dose of hip-hop with his upcoming tour of Canada.

The outing, which kicks off July 16 at the Ottawa Blues Fest in Ottawa, ON, will be in support of Rhymes’ latest album Back On My B.S.

The release, which features the T-Pain-assisted hit “Hustler’s Anthem,” includes appearances from Lil Wayne, Jadakiss, Ron Browz , Mary J. Blige, John Legend, Akon and Jamie Foxx as well as production from DJ Scratch, Jelly Roll, Cool and Dre, the Neptunes and Mr. Porter.

In addition to Rhymes, fans will also be treated to opening sets from Juno and MMVA award-winning rapper Belly and Toronto-based rhymesayer Peter Jackson.

Belly, who is currently enjoying the success of his latest single “Hot Girl” and featured appearance on Danny Fernandes’ “Private Dancer,” will appear on Western Canada tour dates.

The outing’s August shows (Aug. 10-21) will be supported by Jackson, who is garnering a buzz from his debut single, “Come on Over.”

The Canadian tour is the latest achievement for Rhymes.

The Grammy nominated entertainer is noted for his work in films such as Shaft, Higher Learning, Finding Forrester and The Rugrats Movie. Rhymes also has a catalog of hits, including tracks like “Whoo Hah!! Got You All In Check”, “Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See”, “Break Ya Neck”, “Make It Clap, “I Love My Chick,” “Arab Money” and others.

Sunday’s BET Awards may have scored its largest audience for the network, but the event’s producers are coming under fire for a performance featuring Grammy winning rap star Lil Wayne.

The entertainer’s set, which featured fellow rapper Drake and a troupe of teenage dancers, was met with criticism from Columbia University clinical instructor Dr. Janet Taylor, who questioned BET CEO Debra Lee for green lighting Lil Wayne’s performance of his hit song “Every Girl” despite the risqué dance from the teens on stage.

“Perhaps, they are what our kids are used to. I have teenagers, girls no less, who have heard the song and like it,” Taylor told MomLogic.com while referencing the song’s lyrics. “My problem was with the preteens who were proudly onstage, shaking their groove thang to this misogynistic, disrespectful song. It was ridiculous. Debra Lee, the CEO of BET, also the mother of two children, should be asking herself who approved this and how these young girls were allowed to be a part of this ‘act.'”

Taylor’s comments come days after an emotional night at the BET Awards.

Nielsen Media Research shows the Jamie Foxx-hosted show, which was dedicated to the memory of music icon Michael Jackson, was a ratings success by drawing the cable channel’s largest audience on record with an average of 10.65 million viewers.

As a result, the viewership of this year’s BET Awards was more than any other cable broadcast this year and more than any prime-time show on the major networks.

Despite this, the scholar stated how her daughters thought the rapper’s performance “‘was strange’ and inappropriate.”